Ben Lamb, a two-time WSOP Main Event finalist, triumphed in the Aussie Millions A$25,000 Challenge in the first hours of Sunday to scoop a payout of A$647,114 and an ANTON Jewellery ring after dominating action on the event’s second day.

Lamb locked the victory after he agreed on a deal with Jan-Eric Schwippert before the beginning of heads-up. The two players shook hands on splitting what had remained of the prize pool based on their chip counts and flipping blind for the ring and the title. Schwippert, one of the members of Germany’s group of high roller elites, collected A$597,765 for his runner-up finish.

The event attracted a field of 114 entries, who created a prize pool of A$2,736,000. The second and final day of the A$25,000 buy-in tournament began with 19 players returning at the tables of Crown Casino in Melbourne. They were led by Taiwanese poker star Kitty Kuo. The female poker pro has performed quite well in Asian-Pacific tournaments over the past several years and was looking for a first major title from the Aussie Millions. The player actually came really close to winning one last night, but eventually finished fourth for one of her career’s best cashes of A$246,240.

As the day progressed, the Day 2 field of 19 players was reduced to the final seven who gathered around an unofficial final table. Schwippert was the chip leader at that point, followed by Lamb. It can be said that action during the final day of the event was marked by these two’s attempts to outrun each other.

Lamb’s Final Move to Victory

As mentioned above, Lamb and his German opponent were the last men standing in the field. Instead of engaging in what could have been a rather long heads-up duel, the two players agreed to split the remaining money and to flip blind for the title.

On the final hand in play, Lamb’s [Qc][Jc] faced Schwipper’s [10s][4h]. The board ran out [2c][9s][3c][3d][7h] to secure Lamb with the title and the champion’s ring.

In his post-victory interview, Lamb said that the six-handed format was his favorite, and he really enjoyed playing the A$25,000 Challenge. At this time of the year, the player usually participates actively in the PCA and skips the Aussie Millions. However, it was a bit different this year. Lamb decided to play in the PCA for just a week, and then he traveled to sunny Australia for Crown Melbourne’s big annual festival.

Including his latest live poker accomplishment, Lamb now has more than $8.8 million in tournament earnings. As mentioned earlier, the player played at the final table of the WSOP Main Event two times. In 2011, he finished third in the massive event, good for $4,021,138. Last summer, Lamb collected $1 million after took ninth place in the $10,000 Championship.